C is for Cookie

Decorating some cookies with chocolate icing

Serious Decorating going on here

Yummy

Baths tonight for sure

Little more eating....

Trying to clean some dishes in the sink or maybe trying to jump in the sink

Getting ready to mix up another batch of cookies

Sampling the spoon

The boys had a lot of fun recently when we made cookies. It was suprisingly not too messy or maybe I am becoming immune to the kitchen chaos. Its not something I would do very often alone because Aiden gets into everything, but between John and I we can more or less manage everyone and actually make some decent cookies. Aiden enjoyed washing the dishes in the sink while Luke and Liam mixed, poured, and scooped out three different types of cookies. I am pretty sure Luke sampled all of them by sticking his finger or entire hand right in the bowl. Here are a couple pictures from our cookie baking night!

Interviews with Liam and Luke

Why do they put the pictures on the back of the big boy pants? The boys like to wear them backwards so they can see the pictures!

Luke at his interview

Aiden eating his oatmeal and saying "cheeeeese"

Liam at his interview

The "microphone"

At breakfast this morning, I tried to do an "interview" with Luke and Liam. In order to keep us from all talking at once, we tried to use a "microphone" so that whomever had the microphone could do the talking. We had fun in the process anyway and their answers were somewhat predictable (at least for me), but fun for our friends and family to read. So, here goes....

Name: Liam

How old are you? Three or this many (holding up three fingers)

When is your birthday? Not sure

What is your favorite Color? Green

What is your favorite Food? Peanut Butter and crackers

What is your favorite Toy? Buzz and Woody (from Toy Story)

What is your favorite thing to do? Play with Jack (our neighbor), play with Jack and Charlie (twin friends), Play with Mommy and Daddy

What is your favorite movie? Toy Story when Andy is little (#1)

What is your favorite sport(s)? Baseball, Hockey, Basketball

What is your favorite drink? Daddy Juice (Gatorade)

What is your favorite animal? Frogs and Zebras

What is your favorite book? The Bible story book

What is your name? Luke

How old are you? Three

When is your birthday? Jenny's (I am thinking he means January)

What is your favorite color? Purple

What is your favorite food? Pizza

What is your favorite toy? Daddy and Hockey, and trains and cars

What is your favorite thing to do? Play toys with daddy

What is your favorite movie? Toy Story when Andy is going to college (#3)

What is your favorite sport? Biking

What is your favorite drink? Chocolate Milk and Orange Juice (not together)

What is your favorite animal? Giraffe and Frogs

What is your favorite book? The Bible Story book

One more thing...if you have facebook, please go to my profile page and click "like" on the link to our recent vacation. It is a story entitled "The Crabby Beach" that is posted on my wall. I entered a contest for a free vacation. Unlikely, but worth a try! Thanks for any votes.

A visit with Aiden John (AJ) at 19 months....

Aiden is actually sitting in timeout for ramming his car into people, but he is still smiling!

Aiden is often awake before Luke and Liam and he loves to sit at the kitchen table and look at books while I am getting things ready for breakfast. He is looking at his favorite book, The Napping House, which was a 1st birthday gift from Aunt Sarah, Uncle Jason, and Cousin Calvin.

Firetruck birthday party!! Luke and Liam attended a birthday party for a neighborhood friend of ours and they got to ride in a real firetruck.

A visit with AJ at 19 months and counting....

Favorite time of Day: Mornings are probably my best time of day. I can be pretty grumpy in the afternoons.

Favorite Snack: Goldfish crackers and Dried Yogurt puffs.

Favorite Toy: Anything electronic....but I don't like the toy ones, only the real thing. I will climb almost anything to get a cell phone, t.v. remote, camera, etc...Mom even found me hanging from her purse in the laundry room when I climbed up the bench and tried to get her cell phone in her purse on the coat rack.

Favorite Book: The Napping House

Favorite Food: Spaghetti and Breadsticks

Favorite Treat: Dum Dum suckers

Favorite People to Play with: Luke, Liam, Daddy, Mommy, and our neighbor Melissa ("Lilla" as AJ says).

Favorite Song: Happy Birthday

Favorite Comfort Item: Swaddle Blanket with his paci attached to it.

Favorite Movie: Toy Story

Favorite Outside Toy: Cozy Coupe Car

Favorite Words: Mommy, Daddy, LeeLee (Liam), Uke (Luke), Cheese (when smiling for camera), No, Mine, Candy, Juice, Elmo, Movie, Mote (remove), Ipah (Ipod), Blankie, Cow, Truck, Up, Down, Owie (over), Book, etc...Aiden already says a lot of words!

Aiden is a smart little guy and amazes John and I with what he knows for his age. His development is definitely ahead of Luke and Liam at this age. He already knows how to sit in time out and often spends a lot of time there because he can be very persistent. He can be sweet and hug on your neck one minute and then bang you over the head the next minute. He is happy, outgoing, loud, and rarely ever shy around even people he does not know. He has a devilish smile that he flashes when he is doing something he knows he should not be doing.

He loves Luke and Liam and they love him too and watch out for him everywhere we go. Recently, Aiden has been asking to hold Luke's hand as we cross the street to go places. Liam often brings Aiden his paci and blanket when he is upset. We have our rough moments as well, of course. Aiden was pitching a fit about something recently and it bothered Luke and Liam because he was screaming so loud. Luke looked at me and said, "Mommy, maybe we don't really need a baby."

Painting with the Boys

Painting on the back porch

Aiden was more interested in the bottles of paint than in painting a picture

Aiden and his painted belly

John started his new job this week so we are all beginning a little bit of a new routine. He enjoyed his first week quite a bit and feels like the position will be challenging in many areas. The boys and I enjoyed swimming with our twin friends, playing outdoors, eating popsicles, and trying to fight off all the mosquitoes that have suddenly appeared in Minnesota. We did some painting this week and I was reminded why it is not a good idea to paint with a child the age of Aiden. Aiden had no interest in actually painting anything but his belly. Luke and Liam, on the other hand, really enjoyed the painting and were so excited to do it. I was impressed at how much they were into it.

Funny things from the boys this week....

1. Liam always says, "I can't hear it better" when we are in the car and he wants me to turn up the music or the DVD movie.

2. Aiden has learned to sing Happy Birthday and goes around humming it and trying to sing some of the words.

3. Luke said that he is bigger than Liam because he eats chicken and pretty soon if he keeps eating chicken then he will be able to ride the school bus.